A mother applies suncream to her son.
Photograph: Image Source / Rex Features

Britons are putting themselves at risk of sunburn, long-lasting skin damage and even cancer as a result of their ignorance about how to choose and use suncare protection, England’s senior pharmacists have warned.

Amid rising skin cancer rates in the UK, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society has for the first time published an online guide on how to select and correctly use the right products to keep safe in the sun.

The new material, which was written to be understood by consumers as well as by the society’s 45,000 members, was posted last month on the “open access” section of its website and publicised widely via social media.

The move – ahead of hotter temperatures forecast in the UK this weekend – follows earlier calls by the RPS for manufacturers to introduce simpler labelling after it warned that failure to understand the complicated “dual protection” system could be putting people at risk of skin damage and even cancer.

Many consumers are unaware that the SPF rating displayed on labels does not measure good all-round protection from potential sun damage, the RPS says.

Suncreams are designed to protect skin from UVA and UVB radiation, which can both increase the risk of developing skin cancer. SPF indicates the amount of protection offered against UVB, which is the main cause of sunburn, damaging the skin’s more superficial epidermal layers. Protection from UVA rays, which penetrate deep into the dermis, the skin’s thickest layer, is typically indicated by a separate star rating.

The RPS’s assistant chief scientist Colin Cable, who wrote the material, said: “It’s clear that members of the public do not understand the confusing labelling system we have. The first, most important thing is to choose the cream that offers the best protection for you, including both an SPF and star rating. The second is to apply enough, and the third is to ensure that you reapply it regularly if out and about in the sun, ideally every two hours, even if products specify only one daily application.”

Cheap products are often just as effective as their more expensive rivals, Cable added: “All the products will have met the same rigorous tests so consumers are simply paying more for a nicer smell or superior packaging.”

Separate research from the chemist chain Superdrug also revealed widespread consumer confusion. In its survey of nearly 1,000 consumers, 26% were unaware that the SPF of a product was a measure of a sunscreen’s ability to prevent UVB from damaging skin, and 8% wrongly thought the SPF was a measure of how many minutes a product will stop someone burning for.

“The most misunderstood factor when buying suncare is that people think that SPF equals everything,” said Simon Comins, commercial director of Superdrug. “But while choosing the right SPF is important to protect skin against burning, it doesn’t protect against the long-lasting damage resulting from UVA rays.”

Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. In the UK, rates of one form, malignant melanoma, have been steadily rising since the mid-1970s. According to Cancer Research UK, incidence rates are projected to rise by a further 7%, to 32 cases per 100,000 people by 2035.

“The more easily you burn, the more important it is to protect your skin whenever the sun is strong,” said Fiona Osgun from Cancer Research UK. “The best ways to protect your skin are spending time in the shade and covering up with clothes, a hat and sunglasses. For the parts you can’t cover up, use sunscreen with at least SPF15 and 4 or 5 stars. But remember that sunscreen should be used as a last line of defence, and not to stay out in the sun longer or to sunbathe.”

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Tanning was not a sign of good health, she added: “It’s a sign that your skin is trying to repair the damage UV has caused in your cells. And getting a sunburn just once every two years can triple the risk of melanoma, so don’t let sunburn catch you out.”

Prof Helen Stokes-Lampard, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: “Sunny weather is great for getting outside and doing physical activity, which is ultimately good for people’s health and wellbeing.

“But the sun can cause short and long-lasting damage to people’s skin, so if you are planning to spend time in the sun, it’s essential to protect yourself by wearing loose clothing that covers your skin, a wide-brimmed hat, appropriate eye protection and to use a high-factor sunscreen on any exposed areas.

“Hot conditions can also cause dehydration, so it’s important to ensure you drink lots of water.”